eL players you consider good enough for Ireland

**half_full** · 20/03/2007, 5:28 PM

the Club vs country poll got me thinking...I certainly feel no attachment with the current irish squads but i would if they contained eL players (i voted club, the Blues just come first no team would ever come before them for me, simple as)

i just think that the vast majority of irish players who are english and scottish based or incredibley over-rated (thank you sky

) and a good few eL players would do as good a job (as seen with recent transfers to england e.g. stephen ward)

so what eL players do people consider good enough to play/be in a competitive irish squad?
i.e. not just making up the numbers in a meaningless friendly

surely players like Ollie Cahill, Owen Heary, Michael Divine, Glen Crowe (when hes on form), Gary O'Neill etc. are good enough imo for a callup/start

apoligies if this has been discussed before, im new

**pete** · 20/03/2007, 6:11 PM

No LOI players will get callups by Staunton or the next manager. Play a few games in the SPL or Championship & then the exact same players are considered...

**half_full** · 20/03/2007, 6:14 PM

unfortunatley true pete

hopefully wales will do the business saturday and then its by by stan and john

**finnpark** · 20/03/2007, 6:34 PM

Originally Posted by half_full

surely players like Ollie Cahill, Owen Heary, Michael Divine, Glen Crowe (when hes on form), Gary O'Neill etc. are good enough imo for a callup/start

Owen Heary is almost good enough but he is nowhere near as good as Finnan or Carr. Devine's form has been poor of late. He looks over weight and unfit. Brian Murphy of Bohs has the looks of becoming the top keeper here I think.

Glen Crowe was dropped from the Shels team last year. Im not sure what your basing that on. Im sure he will be on the Bohs bench soon enough. Gary O'Neill was 3rd choice striker last season at Shels for most of the start.

I think that none of the Eircom leagues players are good enough but are probably on a par with the current ones. I mean Paul McShane, Wayne Henderson etc would find it hard to make many Eircom sides. I think Ollie Cahill would probably do better than Duff or Kilbane but he is still not good enough.

The best players in LOI for Stan would be Jason Gavin, Neil Fenn, Mark Farren, Barry Molloy, Stuart Byrne. IMO Stuart Byrne is the most gifted and hard working player in the league. He has everything a good midfielder requires but he probably is till only on a par with Lee Carsley. So no, I dont think Eircom players would make a difference to the Irish squad.

**finnpark** · 20/03/2007, 6:37 PM

Originally Posted by pete

No LOI players will get callups by Staunton or the next manager. Play a few games in the SPL or Championship & then the exact same players are considered...

In fairness Steve Staunton's selections methods across the board leave a lot to be desired. How he picks Wayne Henderson who was dropped due to poor form from an English Division 3 side is behond me.

**half_full** · 20/03/2007, 6:42 PM

sorry finnpark, maybe didnt make myself clear

i ment players that are as good as the current irish selections

**finnpark** · 20/03/2007, 8:52 PM

Originally Posted by half_full

sorry finnpark, maybe didnt make myself clear

i ment players that are as good as the current irish selections

Well I dont think there would be a problem getting them. I would be pretty confident of Wexford Youths beating San Marino in San Marino by more than 1 goal. There are no players in Ireland as good as Given, Finnan, Carr, Dunne, McGeady, Hunt, Doyle. Outside them the rest could be touch and go on current form.

I think Gavin should get a call up because they could do with him. Stuart Byrne is getting old. I think Barry Molloy would do a good squad job. The problem with home based players is that they lack big game experience and their physical side are also inferior.

**dublin15bohs** · 20/03/2007, 10:28 PM

Jason Gavin, Owen Heary, Joe Gamble and Brian Murphy.

**TheBoss** · 20/03/2007, 10:30 PM

Originally Posted by finnpark

In fairness Steve Staunton's selections methods across the board leave a lot to be desired. How he picks Wayne Henderson who was dropped due to poor form from an English Division 3 side is behond me.

He is with Preston now

**SligoBrewer** · 20/03/2007, 10:54 PM

keith foy!

foyzer 4 ireland!lol

**OneRedArmy** · 20/03/2007, 11:04 PM

Originally Posted by SligoBrewer

keith foy!

foyzer 4 ireland!lol

I swear I heard him go beep beep every time Deery turned him on Saturday.

**SligoBrewer** · 20/03/2007, 11:08 PM

Originally Posted by OneRedArmy

I swear I heard him go beep beep every time McCourt turned him on Saturday.

McCourt??

Considering he was in the Stands

ON SUNDAY!

**paudie** · 20/03/2007, 11:16 PM

Originally Posted by robbiesdrogs

joe gamble would be another

Not on this season or last season's form unfortunately.

I think Mick Devine is definitely better than Colgan or Henderson.

Not many EL players come to mind as being good enough for the int;l squad but then again I never thought Kevin Doyle was good enough for the Premiership.

**Jerry The Saint** · 20/03/2007, 11:18 PM

Originally Posted by pete

No LOI players will get callups by Staunton or the next manager. Play a few games in the SPL or Championship & then the exact same players are considered...

I've seen this said a lot on here but how true is it really

If this was the thinking, why wasn't Ward called up? Why was Byrne picked when he was with Shels but not now that he's with Cardiff?

None of the players who went to the UK in the close season are in the squad. Players who went to the SPL especially seem to have very little likelihood of being called up (e.g. Foran, Hoolahan, Hunt)

What were the main examples that led to this view? Doyle and Long are the obvious ones but Doyle didn't actually make his Ireland debut until 8 months after he joined Reading.

Far be it from me to stick up for Staunton but I don't know if it's justified in this case. You'd be hard pressed to know what's behind any of his decisions to be honest.

**OneRedArmy** · 20/03/2007, 11:21 PM

Originally Posted by SligoBrewer

McCourt??

Considering he was in the Stands

ON SUNDAY!

You must be seeing things...I said Deery.

Anyway, you've ruined the joke now.

On a serious note, I thought Foy was brutal on Saturday. His passing, his only attribute, wasn't up to much.

The fella you brought on for him had also been to the pie shop when I think about it.

**SligoBrewer** · 20/03/2007, 11:24 PM

u edited it rapidly.. i seen it first

what was the beep beep thing about?

**Risteard** · 21/03/2007, 1:05 AM

Devine and Heary are good enough but no point calling them up at this stage.
Gambles standards have slipped a little over the last 18 months but he misses George i'd say. When he gets Farrelly and Healy in front of him, he could return to contention.
I think Gavin and possibly Barry Ryan should be called up. Deery is up against some good players and this year will be crucial for Roy O Donovan.

I haven't seen Drogs much but a few years ago i thought Webb could solve the left back problem. A pity Stephen Bradley seems to have fallen by the wayside.
He's warming the bench now, isn't he?

**pixiehead** · 21/03/2007, 1:24 AM

Shane Barrett if he Could have Kept up last years performances

**McShels** · 21/03/2007, 9:56 AM

Does Divine qualify to play for Ireland? On a similar thread on the Shels forum last year it was thought that he doesn't qualify.

I also said last year that while Heary IMO is deserving of a call up he wouldn't get one due to his age, but that said I disagree with finnpark and I think that Heary is better than Carr who has been going backwards the last couple of seasons mainly due to injuries and as for Finnan he hasn't played well for Ireland since winning the CL with Liverpool 2 years ago.

For me O'Donovan is the one player who should get a call up.